(GA) needmotime2fish
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Posts posted by (GA) needmotime2fish
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Sounds like it was a perfect day -- warm & sunny, fish biting, and a challenge (with the 18) that you managed to overcome. Nice!!!!
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I've been carp fishing more than 50 years and have only caught one mirror -- and a small one at that.
Congrats! Nice fish! Well done!
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A great story, and a nice job of introducing others to the sport.
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I still have about a half-dozen of my Dad's Zebco 33 reels that he bought between the late 1950's and the 1970's. He used them for everything - bass, trout, carp, even for light saltwater fishing. But he didn't trust the drag. He kept the anti-reverse off with the drag set tight, and either back-reeled or palmed the reel handles to fight a fish. When he was carp fishing, he'd prop his rod on a forked stick, and make absolutely sure that the reel handles were free to turn if and when a carp hit.
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Love it! Welcome, Herb -- it's never too late to start carpin'.
And as for your comment about it not being easy to squat or kneel at age 78 -- It's not always all that easy to do at 68, either!
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Put a prize up for a state record carp any of lower 48, all the usual rules single hooks, rod and line only. witnesses etc.
Make it $1000 for arguments sake, set up an accn't where members can donate towards what the club cant afford to put in it.
Make it open to anyone rather than pushing people to join to enter. Maybe some extra prizes, tackle bait etc on top if your a member
Interesting idea! Offering a significant cash prize for a new state record carp would, at the very least, bring the organization to the forefront and get it some much-needed publicity.
On the other hand, for a fish to be recognized as a state record, many (most ?) states require the angler to bring the fish to some location for formal identification and weighing. Usually, since most anglers don't have the necessary equipment to transport such a large fish while keeping it alive, that means that the fish is killed in the process. That goes against one of the primary goals of our group, to "promote the catch and release of trophy fish".
That presents a dilemma -- is it ever appropriate to go against the group's own C&R goal in order to further promote the group?
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Very nice! Steady action is ALWAYS fun, even when most of the fish are (in your words) "a little on the small side". Besides, when you're into fish, there's always the chance that the next one will be a new PB!
I've had a few days this summer when I was glad for just one or two fish that were smaller than yours!
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All of the suggestions and opinions above are valid and have merit. As "Robert H" (post #15) said, "I suggest trying many different Hooks and finding whats best for You. ..... Most of the Carp hooks sold by CAG Vendors are good hooks in my opinion. Of course people are going to like a certain hook better."
When I started carp fishing, I just used the basic, inexpensive, bait hooks available from Walmart for about $1 for a pack of 20. Then I tried using Gamakatsu hooks, but I didn't see enough difference in performance to justify the much higher price. I live about 15 minutes from both an Academy Sports and a BASS PRO Shop, and have at least four Walmart stores within a 20 minute drive. With so many local sporting goods outlets nearby, I find it hard to justify buying items like hooks and line online. By buying those things locally, I not only avoid shipping charges, but I also get my supplies immediately, without waiting for them to be delivered.
With that in mind, the best hooks I've found locally so far were from BASS PRO in the saltwater department. So far, I've found their "Offshore Angler" hooks to be excellent, and they are reasonably priced ($3 - $5 for 25 hooks, depending on size -- I think I paid $3.50 for a bag of #4, and $4.50 for 1/0 & 2/0). They seem to hold well, and because they're made for saltwater, they're quite strong -- but without being exceptionally heavy. But keep in mind that these may not be suitable for everyone, and if you don't live near a B.P.S., it's probably not worth paying shipping to get them.
I have never tried Fox hooks or any of the other "specialty" carp hooks mentioned earlier (only because I have other options nearby). I'm just noting that I've been well-satisfied with these hooks, and IF you live near a BPS store, it might be worth your time to check them out.
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I often use puffs as a pickup (about half the time). In my limited experience, I seldom have any luck when I use a puff flavored similar to my packbait. I usually do better with a plain puff, or with a puff treated with a little syrup and brown sugar, or with a puff treated with some hot sauce. I've tried flavoring puffs to match my packbait (for example, adding strawberry syrup when I'm using strawberry packbait), but that doesn't often work for me.
I believe it was "Mr. Big" who, in another thread, suggested that plain puffs will pick up some flavor from the packbait, so it's usually not necessary to flavor them. (Note: My apologies in advance if this isn't accurate).
When I use corn or maize as my hookbait, I never attempt to flavor it to match the packbait. When fishing boilies, i seldom use any packbait, but the few times I do, I don't try to match flavors.
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With Lake Lanier still more than 2 feet above full pool, the walkway area is still under water and closed for public use. Tim & I planned to fish adjacent to the swimming area today, so i fished 4 or 5 hours on Monday, mainly to pre-bait for today. I had zero action on Monday (I "thought" I saw one of my rod tips bounce slightly once, but I think it was just wave action). I didn't even see any fish activity on the surface. I spodded a gallon of soaked maize, and also used the catapult to shoot a couple pounds of old frozen boillies.
On Tuesday, we managed just two screaming runs. I landed one, a very "pretty" fish with lots of gold color, but only 4 or 5 pounds. I lost the other one at the bank. We fish in a "no wake zone", and as I was bringing the fish toward the net, a large boat came flying in, running wide open. I was about to shout at the guy when I realized the lettering on the side of the boat said "Park Ranger". They stayed in the area for about 30 seconds, turned around, and went flying off -- again at full speed. Anyway, I was distracted just enough to ignore the fish for a few seconds, and the hook pulled. The fish was a little larger than the other one, but not by much. I didn't mind losing it, but i was upset that the "Park Ranger" decided that it was perfectly OK for him to disregard the No Wake zone. I would have understood if he was responding to an emergency or handling some sort of law enforcement task. But whatever they were doing was some "routine" operation, and there was no need for them to violate the law.
I was also a bit surprised today, when I had two "runs" on boilies, and failed to hook either fish. Both fish ran the drag enough to set off the bite alarm, but quit. I tightened the slack line, and watched as the fish "bit" again and again -- pulling up slack, then dropping it back. After watching this for about a minute, I tried pulling to set the hook when the fish slowly pulled out most of the slack and started pulling down the rod tip. I failed to hook either fish. I was using two small boilies (approx 10 mm diameter) with a small foam lifter, on a hair rig tied on a #4 hook. I rarely miss fish when using boilies, so I'm still a bit confused.
We did check out a new swim that appears to be worth trying. It's in a quieter area, less affected by boat traffic, and it seems to have some shallow weeds nearby that should hold carp. Maybe we'll finally hit a swim that won't require pre-baiting. It's also convenient to parking, and shouldn't be affected by high water. We'll try it next week -- AFTER the busy Labor Day weekend.
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Like the other guys said, you might get bothered by other fish. But it does seem like a reasonable idea, so why not give it a try?
Experimenting is the only way to learn something new.
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I fondly remember years ago when we never prebaited. We went to the river and used canned sweet corn or a jello/shredded wheat dough ball directly on the hook and caught decent numbers. Just get out there and have fun.
Amen to that! I agree with you 100%. Growing up, I never heard of pre-baiting - in fact, it's only since I joined CAG that I started doing it. Back "in the day" (that would be in the 1960's
), I fished creeks and rivers and caught carp on canned corn or doughballs. And in the 1970's & 80's, I even managed to catch a quite few at Lake Lanier the same way. But more recently, I've rarely caught many carp there, unless I've prebaited a bit. Shoot -- before I joined CAG, I'd never even heard of packbait or method mix, either. Back then, I just rigged a hook and sliding sinker, and cast my corn or doughball to a likely-looking spot and waited for a run. These days, however, it seems like the carp can't locate my (hook)bait/pickup unless it's surrounded by a pile of pack bait -- especially at Lake Lanier, where I do most of my
fishing. I know Lanier is full of carp, so maybe I've been fishing in the wrong places. Or maybe the extremely heavy recreational use that the lake is subjected to every year has just scattered the carp a lot more than they were 30 years ago. Regardless of the reason, my opinion is - based on recent experience - pre-baiting and using pack are almost necessities for fishing at Lanier these days.
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Ray's famous song lamented "A Rainy Night in Georgia". Unfortunately, we Georgia CAG-ers are dealing with "A Rainy YEAR in Georgia".
Today has been yet another day of rain. Through July, the Atlanta area has already received almost as much rain as it usually gets in twelve months. If the last five months of August through December get their 'average' rainfall, the total for the year will be about 20 inches above normal. Even Lake Lanier, which is usually 7 to 10 feet low this time of year, is 2-1/2 feet above "full pool".
Many of our best fishing spots are no longer accessible because of high water levels, and some of the rivers aren't fishable for the same reason. Even where it is still possible to fish, it's difficult to establish a baiting schedule because of the weather. Personally, I have little inclination to waste my bait or my time in preparing a spot, and then not be able to fish because of bad weather.
Don't get me wrong -- nearly everyone in the state is happy that we're not going through another summer drought. And the rainy weather has kept summer temperatures down, well below our usual 90-degrees, which has reduced the load on my air conditioner (and my wallet). Also, the reports I've read suggest that some of the local anglers who target other species have done pretty well -- maybe because of the increased rainfall and the lower temperatures.
Realizing that with no pre-baiting, our chances for success won't be great, but we'll still head out between rainy days and try to catch a few. Meanwhile, we'll be looking forward to better carping weather this fall.
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Super job!
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Sounds like a great day on the water to me!
I'm jealous -- I'd like to have a go-to spot near me where the carp bite as soon as the bait hits the water. It sounds like you really had a lot of fun, even if the fish were "small" (if those were small, then some I've caught recently were "tiny"
).One question: How do you prepare grits for use in PVA? When I use grits, I mix instant and quick grits with cream style corn, and use it as pack bait. I'd think the liquid in the corn would cause PVA to melt, so I assume you prepare yours differently.
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I second Baitbucket's description. Nothing better than sharing bank time with friends (the possible exception being the addition of an occasional "interruption" from a Proper Pull Down).
By the way, Captain, you didn't mention the obvious (from your photos). It might be mid-August, but I see that some of the guys were wearing lightweight jackets -- even here in Georgia.
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A great write-up, great results, and a great day.
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Super job, guys! Great looking carp.
All I can find near me are those "small fish spots" you mentioned. In fact, I'm pleased when I catch a double-digit fish.
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Excellent photo!!! It makes me happy to see the younger folks enjoying carp fishing.
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Looks nice! Great pictures.
The dam reminds me of several that used to exist in southern PA where I grew up. Unfortunately, in the past decade, the PA fish commission intentionally breached a number of them. Apparently they believed that the water behind those dams would overheat during the summer and threaten the trout populations downstream. Sorry to say, by eliminating those old dams they effectively erased a lot of local history.
At least they weren't able to erase the memories of fishing there in my younger days.
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Needmotime2fish, the boys took along their gloves and a couple of baseballs to pass the time. How old is your grandson? Maybe something to fill in between fish would be helpful.
Skeet3t --
That was a very smart move on your part. My grandson is just 7, and isn't much into sports yet.
At this point, I'm just happy that he enjoys fishing enough to put aside the video games for a while.
For the time being, I'll take what I can get (the bream fishing) until I think he'll enjoy carping.
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For a shot at catching 13 fish
averaging 20+ pounds
, I'd gladly put up with some mud! Nice job!!!
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Excellent!!! Nice looking spot, too.
I'm happy for you that you've already gotten your grandsons involved. I'm sorry to say that my oldest grandson is still too young and impatient for carp fishing -- for now we just stick to an occasional outing for bream.... but maybe in another year or two????
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Another great story. Nothing better than sharing bank time with friends, unless it's doing it AND catching some good fish.
Congrats on all the PBs.
Where are the Female Anglers?
in Ohio Valley
Posted · Edited by needmotime2fish
I don't personally know any ladies here in Georgia who are active carp anglers. But if I'm not mistaken, the NACA did a feature article a few years back highlighting the ladies of CAG. I believe the article mostly covered some of the wives and girlfriends of our male CAG members, but a few "unattached" ladies might have been included as well.